Fearless
by only here in your arms
Summary: "And I don't know why but with you I'd dance in a storm in my best dress, Fearless" Eli Goldsworthy makes Clare Edwards feel fearless. One-shot!


**Just a little cute one-shot for Eli and Clare. As season 11 approaches, I cannot and will not forget the couple that I will always ship, for their obvious connection and beautiful chemistry. Eclare, always and forever.**

**Enjoy this, I might end up writing more of these if Eli and Clare don't get back together soon. My shipper heart needs Eli and Clare cuteness to cover the drama approaching in season 11.**

**Please review and thanks for reading!**

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><p><em>Cause' I don't know how it gets better than this<em>

_You take my hand and drag me head first__  
><em>_Fearless__  
><em>_And I don't know why but with you I'd dance in a storm in my best dress__  
><em>_Fearless_

_(Fearless – Taylor Swift)_

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><p>They just finished their shift at the bookstore. Eli Goldsworthy and Clare Edwards, both in their teens, met each other at the bookstore when they both applied for a job. They competed for it, developing a friendship, and were hired together.<p>

Eli locks up behind them, making sure that the bookstore was secure, and Clare stands at the edge of the sidewalk, admiring the road. It had just rained and Clare loved the feeling after a storm. People hated the humidity but Clare loved it.

"You're staring quite intensely there Edwards," Eli remarks and Clare finds herself blushing.

She had feelings for this man, feelings she'd never had before, and any sort of comment or remark made her weak at the knees.

"Come on, I'll drive you home."

They walk to Eli's car and Clare continues to admire the pavement. The lights in the parking lot made it look like the pavement was shining. No other cars were there, since it was around midnight, and Clare had the urge to just twirl around and enjoy the beautiful scene around her.

She wanted to ask Eli to dance with her, wanted Eli to hold her as they swayed absentmindedly without music. She pictured it in her mind. It was too vivid.

Eli opens the door for Clare and she smiles. He was a gentleman too.

He starts to drive and puts on music, tapping his fingers to the beat. Clare tries not to stare but once in a while, her eyes drifts over to him. Sometimes he'd be singing along to the song silent, sometimes he'd be biting his lips, sometimes he'd push back his hair with his hand.

Every action just made Clare swoon. She tries not to get caught up in Eli's miniscule, common actions. But she can't help it.

Eli catches her looking at him and she turns her head quickly, hiding her red face as she looked out the window. She hears him chuckle and she sinks into her seat even more.

After several minutes she dares to look at him. She does it through her hair discreetly and she sees him just turning his head from her. He was looking at her too.

Clare smiles to herself and sits back up a bit. She was still embarrassed but relieved. She thinks that Eli was just looking at her to make sure she was okay, no romantic vendetta at all, but it made her feel better to see that she'd caught him too.

"Thanks for the ride," Clare mumbles as she unbuckles her seatbelt. Right after she opens the door, Eli stops her.

"Goodnight Clare," Eli says, giving her a smile.

She smiles back and heads to her door and after Eli gave a wave, he started driving off. Clare plops against the brick wall of her house and sighs dreamily. If the littlest things made Clare swoon, seeing Eli smile just made her so weak in the knees.

Clare goes to her room, floating on a cloud, and she's just flustered and amazed. Eli had an effect on her and she didn't mind at all.

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><p>"Do you want to go out to dinner?"<p>

Clare is caught off guard and drops a few books that she was going to put back to their rightful place. But while they were standing in an aisle of books, Eli approached her and her heart stops. It's his day off too and Clare's just freaking out in her mind.

"With me?" She mentally slaps herself. Smooth, Clare.

"Of course," Eli smiles. "So what do you say?"

"I have work until 9…" Clare says regretfully.

Eli turns his chin up. "I already got you out early, shift ends at 6 now and I'll drive you home if you want to change first and then we'll go out for dinner."

"Sounds great," Clare replies. Eli walks away slowly, flashing her a smile before walking out of the aisle, and she does a little jumping, celebratory dance, squealing to herself.

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><p>After Clare gets dressed in one of her favorite dresses, a floral teal one and matches it with her jean jacket, she climbs back into Eli's car and she's flustered as Eli is looking at her, as if admiring her.<p>

"You look so beautiful," Eli's voice is soft and delicate, much like the smile he has on his face. Clare had never seen that smile before and she was glad to see it.

He drives to a fancy restaurant in downtown Toronto and the ride is long but it was worth it. Clare's face lights up as she sees the beautiful restaurant, featuring a lot of art and paintings and something she'd never seen before.

"It's new," Eli says in her ear as they're waiting in the front line. "Thankfully I got a reservation."

"You—"

Clare was cut off when a waitress walked them to their table which was in the middle of the grand room, the chandelier dangling above them. Eli pulls out Clare's seat for her and takes his own seat, all the while Clare was just amazed. It was too sweet, it was too much, Eli did this all for her.

They ordered their drinks and food and Clare took in everything in the room. There were beautiful landscape paintings framed on the walls, the chandelier was creating a beautiful lightning that made the dark colored room shine.

She turns her attention back to Eli, who was staring at her intently. She caught him and yet he's not looking away. The fact that Eli's eyes were staring deeply into hers made her blush madly.

"You're cute when you're blushing."

Clare can't hide the amused and flattered smile on her face. "You are too sweet."

"I've been wanting to do this in a long time," Eli confessed bluntly. "A _long_ time."

"How long?"

"The first day we met," Eli replied. "I was fighting you for that job, not because I wanted it, just because I loved seeing you get competitive. I didn't care if you had gotten the job instead of me. That would just mean that the bookstore would've become my favorite place in the world."

"You said you got a reservation…how long did you have it?"

"When they started taking reservations…3 months ago."

Wow. Wow. 3 months. 3 whole months that Clare had been crushing on Eli, he felt the same way.

"Why didn't you act like you had feelings for me?" Clare asked him.

"Because you didn't…not until a few days ago when I drove you home," Eli answered. "You kept looking over at me and it was so hard not to keep looking at you. Then I remembered that I had made the reservation and thought, now or never right?"

"I'm glad you chose now," Clare smiled.

"Me too."

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><p>"When that waiter tripped and almost dropped the food he had and when he didn't and everyone started clapping…"<p>

Eli and Clare were laughing hysterically as they drove back home. Clare was talking about the funny things that had happened while they had their dinner. While they talked to each other at their table, they both would catch something that made them laugh and made them more comfortable with each other.

"Or when that little kid threw his cheesecake on the ground and his dad just picked it up and started eating it?"

Clare giggled like a little girl, putting her hand over her mouth as Eli mentioned that moment. Once she finished laughing, she realized that Eli was smirking to himself.

"What?" Clare inquired.

"Nothing, you just have a cute laugh."

"You're very complimentary, you know that?"

"It's easy for me, I'm talking about you."

They arrived at Clare's house and Eli opens the door for her. They stay on the sidewalk, looking at each other, and Clare feels a rain drop on her head.

"It's about to storm," Eli notes, looking at the clouds.

"I should get inside then," Clare sighs. "I had a great time though."

"Can we do it again? Maybe…next week?" Eli suggests. Clare nods and she feels elated. This was actually happening. She seems him starting to lean down as one of his hands tucks a curl behind her ear. Their lips begin getting closer and closer…until suddenly…

The rain pours down on them.

"You should go inside now," Eli tells her. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Wait!" Clare stops Eli from walking away and she tugs on his hand, leading him to the street. "Dance with me."

They stand in the middle of the street, soaked to the bone, but Eli doesn't protest. He just wraps his arms around her waist as she links hers around his neck. Eli sways them back and forth and Clare relishes in the fact that she's standing in Eli's arms, dancing in the rain, in her best dress.

"I would never do this," Clare breathes. Their noses are touching and their lips brush each others. "But you make me feel fearless."

"I'm glad," Eli replies with a grin. "I don't do this either. But when the beautiful girl I really like asks me, how can I refuse?"

They continue to sway back and forth to no music and Eli twirls her around a few times before walking her to her door. They're no longer in the rain and their dripping all over the welcome mat. They laugh once again, eyeing each other and just finding the entire situation funny.

"Our first date and it ends up in us being soaked," Clare laughs.

Eli puts his hand around Clare's cheek again, taking the pieces of hair stuck on her face and pushing them back. He leans down again and finally kisses her.

Clare's hands are shaking but she puts them on Eli's shoulders delicately. Eli pulls away after only a few seconds but the kiss seemed like forever. It was flawless.

Eli pulls her close and breathes her in and Clare's eyes fluttered close at the comfortable situation. It was cold and it was wet but this moment was perfect and beautiful. She couldn't have pictured a better setting for their first kiss.

"Goodnight Clare," he tells her and pecks her lips one more time before stepping back out into the rain. He drove away, leaving Clare to go upstairs, floating on a cloud, and never did her smile leave her face.


End file.
